Worldcoin biometrics collection faces a fine in Argentina, lines in Singapore

A provincial authority in Buenos Aires, Argentina has hit Worldcoin Foundation with a fine and ordered it to strike multiple clauses from its terms of service. One of the alleged violations involves how users’ iris biometrics are stored, but the regulator admits a lack of understanding on the issue.

The Ministry of Production, Science and Technological Innovation has levied a fine of 194 million pesos (roughly US$210,000) against the company for failing to acquire accreditation as an identity services provider and not posting notice that the service is restricted to those 18 years of age and above. The authority had previously threatened fines of up to a billion pesos, or over a million dollars.

The clauses the authority says are not legal state that Worldcoin’s service can be discontinued without reimbursement, and that users agree to renounce collective claims against the company. They also stipulate that users must abide by the regulations of the Cayman Islands, and in the case of a dispute, arbitration would be held in California. These clauses violate the Civil and Commercial Code of Argentina, according to the announcement.

Buenos Aires Undersecretary of Commercial Development and Investment Promotion Ariel Aguilar says the company has claimed both the users’ biometric data is only captured by the Worldcoin orb and then destroyed, and that it is stored abroad.

“The complexity of these contracts, the novelty of the deployed operation, the legal good that is at stake and the lack of information, prevent the clear and fully understanding of the rules and operation of all this operation,” says Aguilar, as machine-translated.

“The Worldcoin Foundation is surprised by the recent fine imposed by the Provincial Directorate for Consumer and User Rights Defense of Buenos Aires and rejects it. The Foundation believes there is a fundamental misunderstanding of the facts and the legal framework and will appeal this decision, confident in its position and the precedents set by competent courts,” a representative of Worldcoin Foundation told Biometric Update in an email.

“The Worldcoin Foundation remains committed to maintaining transparent and fair practices in Argentina, and will continue to uphold the highest standards of data privacy protection in compliance with all applicable laws and regulations in the markets where Worldcoin operates.”

Worldcoin is still seeking a growth and operations specialist for its market operations team in Argentina.

Sign-up lines in Singapore

People in Singapore are queuing up to enroll their digital identity and perform iris biometric deduplication, The Straits Times reports.

There are 10 Worldcoin enrolment locations across the island, and most of those lined up at location visited by the Times in May and June were migrant workers.

Singapore’s Personal Data Protection Commission has cautioned consumers to be aware of how their personal data will be used before submitting it, and noted the company’s obligations under the nation’s Personal Data Protection Act.

Tools for Humanity Chief Privacy Officer Damien Kieran reiterated to the outlet that biometric data is stored in an app on the user’s own phone for authentication. He also admitted that the company has not done enough to make clear to regulators how its data-handling works.

The Worldcoin token, WLD, reached the market a year ago, and is now trading at around $2.30.

Article Topics

Argentina  |  biometrics  |  cryptocurrency  |  digital identity  |  iris biometrics  |  Singapore  |  World  |  World ID  |  World ID Orb